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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. game — a match
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. fall — the season
  5. capital — a city
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. pitch — completely
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. hand — help
  11. fall — to drop
  12. toast — bread
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. fall — to drop
  16. hand — in cards
  17. game — wild animals
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. rock — music
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. rock — a stone
  24. toast — the most admired

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com